The moonlight essence of K2S (Katraj to Sinhagad), just the Puneri style!!

byMoumita Chakraborty

The moonlight essence of K2S (Katraj to Sinhagad), just the Puneri style!!

ByMoumita Chakraborty | 14 March 2017

You may be a quest buff and you may all like the trekking thrill, but when in Pune and haven’t done the ‘K2S’, your motive to be an adventurer is incomplete. It’s one of the toughest treks around Pune which gives a rollercoaster ride to your motivation, endurance and will power. The moment you feel, “Oh this one’s the last one”, and you see another one and the never ending saga till the Sinhagad base.
So what is K2S basically? K2S is Katraj to Sinhagad which is usually a night trek that starts from old Katraj tunnel that takes you through the series of hills and mountains which are almost more than 15 (Approx 17kms). The trek is so tiring that it almost becomes impossible to complete it during the day time and hence the night scenario is chosen.
The highs and lows of the hills, the Western Ghats, the scenic view of Pune city at night enthralls one to keep going for the trek. As it is one of the USP treks of Pune Adventure clubs, each of them strives firm to give that apt experience to each participant, and why not, experiences are for the lifetimes.

So keeping this desire, on 11th March 2017, RAW Adventure Solutions set out for the K2S journey with 20 individuals. We started our journey at the old Katraj tunnel by being dropped by a private vehicle. Excited, not knowing what will come their way, we all headed towards the Waghjai temple, where the actual trek starts.

As the individual starts climbing the initial hills, the endurance is highly tested, so much so that a sense of doubt starts generating the minds of the climber. Nivedita Baranwal, a 22 year old student and a newbie said “Why did I even choose to come to this trek, I shouldn’t have opted for this”, but the same individual was amongst the one to finish the trek on time which was estimated. She added, “Thank God I came for this as it helped me figure out my own endurance and capability”.

A 50 year Gynecologist who started this trek after a gap 20 years was initially skeptical about it, also there were times when she gave up and decided not to continue, but the K2S is one of the treks where you either finish it or there’s no going back. She said “I’m glad I did this after a long gap and also pulled out my husband for this adventure, and successfully completed it”.

The zeal and utter endurance by all of them was worth giving it a mark. The 20 individuals successfully completed the trek and to the awe are, that it was completed ON TIME.

The picturesque rising sun at the mountain backdrop, gleaming faces that were started to recognize settled in the foothills of Sinhagad, hungry tummies, painful bodies and a feeling of contentment and achievement. Yes!! That is what an individual takes along after the whole night of walking and climbing of several hills.

K2S being one of the important treks around Pune, an adventure junkie cannot stay without doing it. If in Pune and not done a Katraj to Sinhagad, that too at night, you will definitely miss out the essence of being in Pune. It is a strong recommendation from every adventure buff in Pune and also from the ones who have completed it.